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Spider-Folk
The spider-folk are a clandestine organization in Esk made up of spies and master thinkers. Secretive and zealously cynical, they rarely sell their highly valuable information to just anyone; persons seeking their guidance must prove their worth before being told anything. Because of their unique nature, they are often considered nothing but an urban legend. History and Philosophy The Spiders were established by the Man with All the Faces, a human who gathered together exceptional actors, storytellers, observers, strategists, and psychologists to form a corps of elite information gatherers. The organization has grown ever since, employing a league of "invisibles" as their myriad eyes and ears. They abide by the code "he who sees all knows all." Hierarchy The Spiders have an established chain of command in their organization. Unsuprisingly, the model they use is web-like; millions of information sources lead to a single node of intelligence, and from this perspective all things can be seen and understood. The Man with All the Faces The Chief Spider, who commands their legions of informants. He is legendarily the most widely-studied person in Esk. The position has been handed down since the organization began. Requisite Skills: Legendary "Puzzling" - Legendary Cold Read - Legendary Detect Lies - Legendary Plotting Passive Ability: '''Chessmaster—understand another character with such exquisite precision that you can accurately predict what they will do and how they will do it. Cost: 1 Legend Point. Gameplay: the GM rolls 1d100; if the number rolled is less than the character's Wits, the GM tells the Player precise and detailed information about another character (NPC). (If used on a PC, the Player in question gives the information.) If, however, the number rolled is greater than the character's Wits, the GM tells the Player a precise and detailed lie. At no point does the GM tell the Player what was rolled. (Note: the Man with All the Faces is NPC unless granted to a Player by the GM.) '''Required Attribute: '''Wits of 100, Education 5, Status 5. '''Suspected Nature: ''Calculating'' Puzzlers Radiating outward in the web of information are the Puzzlers, who parse extraordinary amounts of information in order to deduce the truth. There are at least 500 in the Spiderweb at any given time. Requisite Skills: '''Legendary "Puzzling" - Master Disguise - Master Drama - Master Detect Lies '''Activated Ability: "Insight"—armed with mountains of information, rapidly calculate the possibilities and odds of many solutions; in a burst of clarity, understand the implications of everything you have seen. Cost: 1 Legend Point. Gameplay: Player succeeds in an extremely difficult Wits check. Required Attribute: Wits of 50 or above, Education 3, Status 2. Suggested Natures: Rationalistic, Calculating Facers Beside the Puzzlers, the Facers are the most specialized part of the Spiderweb. Though they lack the Puzzlers' ability to deduce conclusions from seemingly nothing, they are experts in behavioral psychology. It is said that an experienced Facer can tell a man details about himself he never knew. Most often, Facers and Puzzlers work in tandem; some have said that such a pair could read the future if they needed to. Requisite Skills: '''Legendary Cold Read - Master Disguise - Master Drama - Master Detect Lies '''Activated Ability: "Fathom"—having met another character, accurately understand many things about them. Cost: 1 Legend Point. Gameplay: the Player is told a particular detail about another character (PC or NPC) which would feasibly be deducible in-game. This may be portions of backstory, underlying motivations, internal struggles, Natures, or other things relating to personality. Required Attribute: Wits of 50 or above, Education 2, Status 2. Suggested Natures: ''Inquisitive, Unnoticeable'' Raconteurs The Raconteurs—often called Liars or Bards—are responsible for maintaining the Spiderweb's reputation: that is, they make sure the common folk keep thinking they're urban legends and the wealthy folk keep wondering if they exist. It is unclear whether the Raconteurs are truly a part of the organization or merely freelance storytellers meant to keep the Spiders in business but out of the public eye. Of course, since it would be suspicious to tell tales only of the Spiders, Raconteurs often use their skills to nudge public perceptions in one direction or another (which has caused conflict among the Spiders in the past). Requisite Skills: '''Legendary Deceive - Master Disguise - Master Drama - Master Storytelling '''Activated Ability: "Legendeer"—spin a story so convincing that people will sing songs about it in the coming centuries. Cost: 1 Legend Point. Gameplay: the Player may influence Reputations in the wide world of Esk. This may be positive or negative: if, for instance, the Liar has a bone to pick with another character, he may use this to make certain his enemy's name goes down in infamy. Since songs sometimes move faster than feet, these might influence a character's Reputation in towns s/he has never visited. (Bonuses may be earned if the Player composes a poem, song, or epic tale to accompany the use of this Activated Ability.) Required Attribute: Dynamism of 50 or above, Education 2, Status 3. Suggested Natures: ''Deceitful, Manipulative'' Sweepers / "Invisibles" The most numerous and least specialized of the Spiders, numbering perhaps in the thousands. In truth, Sweepers are really just folk whom the Spiders pay for information. They can be anyone: a baker, a carpenter, a street urchin, a janitor, a king. All information, after all, is valuable. Invisibles are entitled to very few of the benefits which their fellow Spiders enjoy, although they are considered favored and often have friends in the Web. Many have grown up to become Puzzlers, Facers, and Raconteurs. Requisite Skills: '''Normal Information Gathering - Improved Disguise - Improved Deceive '''Required Attribute: N/A Suggested Natures: ''Inquisitive, Unnoticeable'' Worthiness Spiders refuse to give information to anyone who does not prove "worthy" in their eyes. In keeping with their philosophy, worthiness is determined by one's ability to find a Spider who is actively hiding, rather than one's ability to pay or one's status (though those are important factors, too). If someone proves worthy, the spider-folk will grant him or her three questions, which can be asked immediately or saved for later times. Some people receive more than the requisite three questions, though it is not known how this is accomplished. Many suspect is has to do with money, but this has not been conclusively proven and—with Raconteurs muddying the waters—no stories can be trusted. Category:Organization